RTP-area local music and culture

[grady <grady AT ibiblio.org>]

Tuesday, February 16
Jokes & Jokes & Jokes    (http://www.myspace.com/jokesjokesjokes)
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Wednesday, February 17
Kaze    (http://www.souldojo.com/)
Urban Sophisticates    (http://www.urbansophisticates.com/)
Inflowential    (http://www.myspace.com/inflowential)
The Beast
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

Sometime over the past few years, NC became a legitimate hotbed of 
live-band hip-hop, and this show serves to showcase most of the leading 
lights of the movement.



Wednesday, February 17
Casual Curious    (http://www.myspace.com/casualcurious)
Lands of Wonder    (http://www.myspace.com/landsofwonder)
The Pinhook, Durham

10- Lands of Wonder
9 - Casual Curious



Wednesday, February 17
Crowmeat Bob
715 Collective
Jason Ajemian
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

The 715 Collective are a bunch of artists & musicians loosely affiliated 
with the new 715 Washington artspace in Durham. They say about this 
show: "It's a showcase of improvisational / spontaneous composition 
groups -- along with us there will also be the great Crowmeat Bob & 
Company and from New York Jason Ajemian & the Highlife."



Wednesday, February 17
American Aquarium    (http://www.americanaquarium.com/)
John Howie, Jr. & The Rosewood Bluff 
(http://www.myspace.com/rosewoodbluff)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Thursday, February 18
Dean & Britta    (http://www.deanandbritta.com/)
Reynolds Auditorium, Duke, Durham

Dean & Britta (aka Dean Wareham & Britta Phillips, both ex-Luna) were 
commissioned last year by the Warhol Museum to write a song-cycle to 
accompany a series of Warhol's "Screen Tests," his silent 16mm portraits 
of Factory regulars (among them Lou Reed, Edie Sedgwick, Dennis Hopper & 
Nico). The result is "13 Most Beautiful," a multimedia setup featuring 
Dean & Britta's band (including local hero Lee Waters on drums) playing 
under large projections of the films.

Here's a review of a New York performance of the cycle last year.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/20/arts/music/20warh.html?_r=4&ref=arts



Thursday, February 18
Zeke Graves
Applesauce    (http://www.myspace.com/applesaz)
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Thursday, February 18
North Elementary    (http://www.northelementary.com)
The Proclivities    (http://www.myspace.com/theproclivities)
Tir Na Nog, Raleigh

This is the weekly Local Bands, Local Beers show/case.



Thursday, February 18
Transmography    (http://www.transmographymusic.com/)
La Snacks
Make
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Thursday, February 18
Colossus    (http://www.myspace.com/thecolossuswillcrushyou)
Mortal Man    (http://www.myspace.com/mortalmanrocks)
Salvacion    (http://www.myspace.com/salvacionrocks)
Reservoir, Carrboro



Friday, February 19
Violet Vector and the Lovely Lovelies 
(http://www.myspace.com/violetvectorandthelovelylovelies)
Swaso    (http://www.myspace.com/swasomusic)
The Guns of El Borracho    (http://thegunsofelborracho.com/)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

Violet Vector & the Lovely Lovelies may have a cutesy name & a 
bell-heavy girl-group reputation, but their second EP was actually a big 
ol' slab of intense psych. With really cute outfits.



Friday, February 19
Erie Choir    (http://www.eriechoir.com)
Schooner    (http://www.schoonermusic.com)
The Popular Kids
Veelee    (http://www.myspace.com/seeveelee)
The Pinhook, Durham

This is an EP-release party for Schooner's new Duck Kee Sessions EP. The 
EP itself is download-only, and is exclusively available via 
cytunes.org. But in a neat twist, Schooner asked a bunch of local 
artist/musician types to contribute unique/limited-edition "cover art" 
that you can buy & hang on your wall (& it comes with a download code 
for the EP). Artists include Ron Liberti, Chris Williams & Dave & Shirle 
Koslowski, among others.

12 - Schooner
11 - Erie Choir
10 - Veelee
9 - The Popular Kids (comedy by Kelly Crisp)



Friday, February 19
Embarrassing Fruits    (http://www.myspace.com/embarrassingfruitsband)
Pistil    (http://myspace.com/pistilband)
La Snacks
Broad Street Cafe, Durham



Friday, February 19
Annuals    (http://www.myspace.com/annuals)
Gray Young    (http://www.myspace.com/grayyoung)
Bright Young Things
Pour House, Raleigh



Friday, February 19
A Rooster for the Masses    (http://www.myspace.com/aroosterforthemasses)
Plumerai    (http://www.plumerai.com/)
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Friday, February 19
Senryu    (http://www.senryutheband.com/)
Juan Huevos    (http://www.myspace.com/juanhuevos)
Gut Lightning
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Friday, February 19
Laura Veirs and the Hall of Flames    (http://lauraveirs.com/)
Old Believers    (http://www.myspace.com/oldbelievers)
Cataldo    (http://www.myspace.com/cataldomusic)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Friday, February 19
Blood Red River    (http://www.myspace.com/bloodredriver)
Suki-T
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh



Saturday, February 20
Acid Reflux
Devour
Stripmines
Total Wreck
Crooked Teeth
Bull City Headquarters, Durham

NC/NYC/Richmond, VA hardcore show at BCHQ!



Saturday, February 20
Screaming Females    (http://www.screamingfemales.com)
Whatever Brains    (http://www.myspace.com/whateverbrains)
Jeff the Brotherhood
Duke Coffeehouse, Durham

Screaming Females are from up the east coast a ways, but they come 
through often enough to have built up quite a following. They played 
Troika 2 years ago; I didn't see them, but after their set I ran into a 
friend on the street who'd just seen them for the first time. He was 
kind of incoherent, in the classic manner of one who's just had his mind 
utterly blown.

I *have* seen Whatever Brains, and there are certainly moments in their 
catalog of scuzzed-out noise-pop mini-epics that'll leave me utterly 
incoherent as well.



Saturday, February 20
Red Collar    (http://www.myspace.com/redcollarmusic)
Dirty Little Heaters    (http://www.myspace.com/thedirtylittleheaters)
Pink Flag    (http://www.myspace.com/pinkflagnc)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

This is a CD-release for the LONG awaited debut Dirty Little Heaters 
full-length, "Champions of Imperfection," and it's a doozy. Anyone who's 
ever heard them could cite burr-voiced belters like Janis Joplin as 
influences (and anyone who's ever *seen* singer Reese McHenry's 
ubiquitous Kiss t-shirt could cite them as well).

But unless you've been paying close attention, this new album might 
surprise you with a third major influence: Black Sabbath. This record is 
bass-heavy, riff-tastic, and Reese's vocals are echoey & placed low down 
in the mix, as though to encourage you to turn it up as LOUD as possible.



Saturday, February 20
The Dynamite Brothers    (http://www.dynamitebrothers.com/)
Bull City    (http://www.bullcitytheband.com/)
The Pinhook, Durham

Seems like the last couple of Bull City shows got postponed or canceled, 
but I have it direct from Jim Brantley that this one's a go. He says 
"John Kurtz is even flying in from NYC to play the show."

Of course, with some members flung to faraway places, and others fixing 
to fling themselves even further, it seems inevitable that Bull City 
*will* wind down at some point. So soak up their potent mix of 
Chiltonian weirdness & Southern Rock while you can.

It took them 6 years, but the Dynamite Brothers finally released their 
second album late last year, and it's a doozy, even more loaded with 
greasy blues/funk/boogie than their debut.



Saturday, February 20
Monsonia    (http://www.monsonia.com)
Le Weekend    (http://www.myspace.com/leweekendleband)
Actual Persons (Living or Dead) 
(http://www.myspace.com/actualpersonslivingordead)
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

Monsonia make the angular Slinty postpunk power-trio stuff that all the 
kids used to like, back before the kids all grew beards & turned into 
fuckin hippies. Actual Persons Living or Dead are grownup rock from 
Durham, made by people who never bothered to grow up. Le Weekend are 
sorta inexplicable, and sorta like Half Japanese meets Jaco-era Joni 
Mitchell.



Saturday, February 20
The Curtains of Night    (http://myspace.com/thecurtainsofnight)
HOG
Human Smoke    (http://www.myspace.com/humansmoke)
Reservoir, Carrboro





Sunday, February 21
Ben Davis + The Jetts    (http://www.lovitt.com/artists/bendavis.html)
WXDU 88.7 FM, Durham

Ben Davis & the Jetts just released their 4th album, "Charge It Up!" 
(4th if you count their half of the BD/des_ark split "Battle of the 
Beards" as their 3rd, anyway), and it's their best yet. There's a 
tautness, a crackling energy that feels like it has been building since 
Ben's days in Milemarker & Sleepytime Trio.

Tune in at 4:00 p.m, 88.7 FM or wxdu.org.



Sunday, February 21
Wylie Hunter    (http://www.myspace.com/wyliehunter)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Monday, February 22
Generationals    (http://www.myspace.com/generationals)
Floating Action    (http://www.myspace.com/floatingaction)
Jason Kutchma
Hacienda    (http://www.myspace.com/haciendaspace)
Broad Street Cafe, Durham

Jason Kutchma of Red Collar goes on with a solo set at 7:30, so you can 
make a whole evening of it. Just make sure you're still around for 
Asheville's Floating Action, whose quirky mixture of lo-fi 60s 
soul/funk, with touches of country and first-wave ska, made their 
self-titled album one of my faves of 2009. (It was actually their third; 
the first two were released under the name of frontman/mastermind Seth 
Kauffman.)

• 7:30P Jay Kutchma (of Red Collar)
• 9P Floating Action
• 10P The Generationals
• 11P Hacienda



Monday, February 22
Triangle Soundpainting Orchestra
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

Triangle Soundpainting Orchestra are in the middle of a monthlong 
Monday-night residency at Nightlight, wherein they'll do a mix of open 
rehearsal and audience-education about the somewhat mystifying 
discipline that is soundpainting.



Monday, February 22
Leslie and the Lys    (http://www.leslieandthelys.com)
Christopher the Conquered 
(http://www.myspace.com/christophertheconquered)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Tuesday, February 23
Greg Humphreys
The Small Ponds
Broad Street Cafe, Durham

This is the latest in the Broad Street Cafe's "Public Nudity" 
songwriters' series, hosted by Greg Humphreys. The guests tonight are 
The Small Ponds, otherwise known as Caitlin Cary (Tres Chicas, 
ex-Whiskeytown) and Matt Douglas (The Proclivities).



--------> http://www.trianglerock.com <--------